Training Articles

Focusing on Progress

A picture says a thousand words. Take regular progress pictures throughout your Challenge. You will be amazed at the changes that you see. Many Champions took progress pictures every four weeks (Week 1, Week 4, Week 8 and Week 12). You can take these pictures in the same clothes that you wore for your first “before” photo. Place them side by side with previous progress pictures so that you can see the changes that you are making.

Measure up. Use a measuring tape to update your measurements every four weeks. Even if you are not noticing a change in your scale weight, by measuring yourself you might realize that you are losing inches, because in addition to losing fat, you are also gaining muscle. You are truly reshaping your body.

Try it on. Do you have an item of clothing that was tight or that you were unable to fit into at the beginning of your Challenge? This is also a great measure of your progress. Try this item of clothing on periodically throughout your Challenge; you’ll probably see that it starts to fit better and better.

Reread your journal. Look back to your first couple weeks on the Challenge. You will probably notice that at this point, you are lifting heavier weights and running, biking or walking at a higher intensity. These are all signs of progress.

Stay positive. Changes happen at different paces for everyone. Even if you are not making as much progress as you had hoped to at this point, stick with it. Many past participants experienced their most drastic changes in the last three or four weeks of their Challenges. If they had gotten discouraged and quit earlier in their Challenges, they would have never gotten to that point. Small changes do lead to big results.

Join the Challenge

You can now submit your Challenge information online.The new online entry process allows you to begin entering Challenge and essay information, save it, and finish entering later. The registration process only takes a minute, but the changes you'll see after your 12-week transformation will last a lifetime.

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